True Origins of End Run Covert Art Revealed! (November 4, 2023)

[Bandit LOAF]

THRILLING ART NEWS! It turns out that the amazing cover to Wing Commander: End Run was NOT painted by Paul Alexander (as credited)... but David Mattingly! And... HE SELLS PRINTS AT HIS WEBSITE! Cool kids will know David Mattingly for his Animorphs covers while extremely hip gentlemen will know him for his Honor Harrington ones.





End Run credits its cover art to Paul Anderson - the same as Freedom Flight, Fleet Action and Action Stations (which was commissioned for the WC3 novel). Those other three look like Paul Anderson paintings, though, and End Run kind of sticks out in its style. The painting was certainly sold years ago as a Paul Anderson original, but now that we have this super high res photography:





His wizard art is also worthy of song:





I don't know if there's a story behind the incorrect credit... but it's worth remembering that this is the same series that also credited a whole book to the wrong author.





To find the art on his website and order your own print, visit this page and search for Wing Commander. Alternately, it's on page 14 of his Other Gallery. Click on the image and four options appear:

• 8.5 × 11 print on Epson Art Velvet paper $20
• 13 x 19 print on Epson Art Velvet paper (matte) $50
• 13 x 19 print on Epson Legacy Platine paper (glossy) $70
• 17 x 22 print on Epson Art Velvet paper (matte) $100

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Original update published on November 4, 2023

 

[Bob McDob]

So, which one did you order?

 

[ChrisReid]

So, which one did you order?

Good question. I think the obvious choice is the biggest one? Glossy is tempting too.

 

[davidmattingly]

Thanks for the nice piece on my cover art. I think Paul had done the other covers, so they mistakenly credited him instead of me. But I did have my name clear on the cover.
By the way, anyone who orders one of the large size "Wing Commander" prints will get a free signed print of my "Flying High" painting. Just mention that in the order so I don't forget.

 

[Bandit LOAF]

I received mine yesterday and it's wonderful! Thank you so much for the extra print. I can attest to the quality and would encourage anyone interested to pick one up… seeing all the little details is like wearing glasses for the first time!

This has all been a bit of a crazy story. I've loved the End Run painting for years and years… in fact, I've carried a tiny little digital picture of the original painting with me for years from when it was for sale in an online gallery circa 1997 just because it showed the edges cut off by the book cover! And like most big SF nerds I knew who you were… both because your Honor Harrington paintings are legendary and because I knew my sister had been a student. But I didn't think twice about the credit to Paul Alexander in the book until I happened to see a closeup of it last week and picked up on your name. And then it all made sense!

What you might not know is that the ship on your cover is absolutely beloved by Wing Commander fans. They've put it in so many of their own games and movies and artwork featuring it over the years! Folks have made everything from 3D models to hats with the silhouette on them! Here's a recent YouTube video that's all about it (in the Wing Commander world):

Anyway, I was so happy to find that you offer prints and I suspect other Wing Commander fans will feel the same way!

Ben

 

[Dyret]

I love that early 90s sci-fi look where it's kinda grounded and industrial but with bright neon lights everywhere. I'm not sure what inspired it, but I wouldn't hate to see it make a comeback.

 

[Bob McDob]

Thanks for the nice piece on my cover art. I think Paul had done the other covers, so they mistakenly credited him instead of me. But I did have my name clear on the cover.
By the way, anyone who orders one of the large size "Wing Commander" prints will get a free signed print of my "Flying High" painting. Just mention that in the order so I don't forget.

Your work is really great. End Run is still I think the best cover ever made for a Wing Commander product, ever. It combines the WC I & II cover art but did it in a way that grounded it in the actual story. Did you receive any specific direction for it? I'm guessing that at least they sent you the Sabre cockpit art, and presumably the WCII box art as well. The Tarawa is so well rendered but more importantly, well-designed, that when fans decided to make 3D models for games and printing it really wasn't a difficult leap at all. Here's an early one from 2002.

It feels like a secret design that was drawn up by Origin at the same time as the others, even though I not only know it's an original design but we have the entire 3D archive from Origin of the period.

I received mine yesterday and it's wonderful! Thank you so much for the extra print. I can attest to the quality and would encourage anyone interested to pick one up… seeing all the little details is like wearing glasses for the first time!

I wasn't aware of the existence of cotton paper until I looked into what Epson Art Velvet actually was. What's it actually like compared to 'normal' pulp paper? More canvas-like?

 

[davidmattingly]

Your work is really great. End Run is still I think the best cover ever made for a Wing Commander product, ever. It combines the WC I & II cover art but did it in a way that grounded it in the actual story. Did you receive any specific direction for it? I'm guessing that at least they sent you the Sabre cockpit art, and presumably the WCII box art as well. The Tarawa is so well rendered but more importantly, well-designed, that when fans decided to make 3D models for games and printing it really wasn't a difficult leap at all. Here's an early one from 2002.

It feels like a secret design that was drawn up by Origin at the same time as the others, even though I not only know it's an original design but we have the entire 3D archive from Origin of the period.


I wasn't aware of the existence of cotton paper until I looked into what Epson Art Velvet actually was. What's it actually like compared to 'normal' pulp paper? More canvas-like?

Epson Art Velvet is an acid free paper, and also heavier than normal paper. It doesn't have a canvas tooth to it, so it preserves the detail of the original painting better than other print surfaces.